Medical adhesive dressings are used for a variety of medical applications. Adhesive dressings can provide barrier protection from infectious species to a wound or catheter insertion site. Transparent adhesive dressings are commonly used at a catheter insertion site because visual monitoring of the site can be achieved without removing the dressing.
It is often desired to have a medical dressing with fluid management properties, e.g. having the ability to absorb, wick, and evaporate fluids. These properties are desired for applications where continuous fluids management is needed, such as at wound sites or at intravenous (IV) sites.
Cellulosic nonwovens have the ability to absorb and wick water, for instance; however, they tend to hold on to water and often lose their structural integrity. Other super absorbing materials, e.g. sodium polyacrylate fibers, can absorb high levels of moisture, yet undergo significant swell that leads to dimensional changes in the material.
Various polymeric particles having pores have been prepared. Some of these have been used, for example, as ion exchange resins or other chromatographic resins. Others have been used, for example, to adsorb and/or deliver different active agents. Such particles are described, for example, in U.S. Patent Application 2010/0104647 (Ting), U.S. Patent Application Publication 2011/0123456 (Pandidt et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 6,048,908 (Kitagawa), and Patent Application Publications WO 2013/077981 (Sahouani), WO 2007/075508 (Rasmussen et al.), and WO 2007/075442 (Ramussen et al.).